Monday, November 04, 2013

MDC-T is struggling to obtain substantive evidence that Zanu-PF “stole” the 31 July elections and has urged its supporters to forget about the heavy defeat and brace for 2018 elections. Addressing about 300 supporters who turned up for Mkoba constituency victory celebrations at Mkoba Stadium on Sunday, MDC-T vice president Ms Thokozani Khupe said the party leadership was still shocked by Zanu-PF’s resounding victory.

She said the party should move out of its “mourning” mood and prepare for the 2018 elections. “My brothers and sisters, everyone was shocked by the July 31 elections and I know most of us are still mourning.
“As the party leadership, we have been to all the provinces and we have been told ‘chilling stories’ of how Zanu-PF stole the election,” she said.

Ms Khupe said MDC-T was yet to obtain anything tangible to show the world that Zanu-PF rigged. She said party members should pick themselves up and prepare for the next elections, five years from now.

She claimed that the whole world was aware that Zanu-PF “rigged the election” but needed tangible evidence to act.

“We are yet to get any substantive information to provide the world. We wanted ZEC (the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission) to avail us with the material that was used during the voting process, but they refused. We also wanted an electronic voters’ roll but they also refused to release it and there is therefore nothing we can do,” she said.

ZEC is not refusing to give MDC-T voting materials, but is complying with a court ruling, which denied the party access to the materials.
Sadc and the African Union declared the elections free and fair and an expression of the will of the people of Zimbabwe .

African leaders, among them South African President Jacob Zuma, urged MDC-T to bring forward evidence of “rigging” but up to now the party has not done so.

The United Nations has since congratulated President Mugabe for the resounding victory and the world body’s secretary-general Mr Ban Ki-moon’s message flew in the face of the Anglo-Saxon alliance of the United States, Britain and Australia that stubbornly refuses to recognise the elections that have been endorsed by the AU, Sadc, Comesa, ACP and over 40 countries spread across five continents as a credible expression of the will of Zimbabweans.

Even former UN secretary-general Mr Kofi Annan, whose dislike of President Mugabe is known, recently told the British Guardian that President Mugabe did not need “games” to win.

Two MDC-T provinces — Mashonaland East and Matabeleland North — have openly admitted that Zanu-PF won the elections cleanly despite the party’s national leaders harping on rigging claims.

Mashonaland East took full responsibility for the defeat, while Matabeleland North blamed it on the imposition of candidates, a weak manifesto and shambolic structures.

Ms Khupe said the mourning should come to an end.

“I know everyone here is still mourning this defeat, I have come here to give you hope. We should not continue mourning. We should be hopeful like the biblical David and prepare for another fight come next elections.

“As it is, Zanu-PF believes they have dealt us a heavy blow. My advice to you is let’s focus for another fight,” she said.

Ms Khupe said the party would stand by its leader, Mr Morgan Tsvangirai, who would be the party candidate in 2018.

“We will stand by our president, Morgan Richard Tsvangirai. In Matabeleland we say Tsvangirai ngenkani, ongafuniyo khayekele,” she said apparently confirming the rising discord within the party over Mr Tsvangirai’s continued stay at the helm.

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